The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman,met today and simplified ‘Make- II’ procedure. which prescribes guideline’s to be followed to develop and manufacture defen. equipment through Indian Industry. The DAC also cleared procurement of 72,400 assault rifles and 93,895 carbines on fast track basis for Rs 3547 cr to enable the Defence Forces to meet their immediate requirement for the troops deployed on the borders.

To encourage participation of private sector in defence design and production and to one a boost to Make-in-India programme, the Council today introduced significant changes in the ‘Make II’ category of the Defence Procurement Procedure. Considering that no government funding is involved in Make II project, the DAC simplified the procedure to make it industry friendly, with minimal government control.

The salient aspects of the revised procedure will now allow MoD to accept suo-moto proposals from the industry and also allows start-ups to develop equipment for Indian Armed Forces. The minimum qualification criteria to participate in Make II projects has also been relaxed by removing conditions related to credit rating and reducing financial net worth criteria.

As per the earlier Make-II procedure, only two vendors were shortlisted to develop prototype equipment. Now, all vendors meeting the relaxed eligibility criteria will be allowed to participate in the prototype development process. The vendor will not be required to submit Detailed Project Report. After accord of approval of the Make —II project by the council, all clearances will be accorded at Service HQ (SHQ) level.

To hand-hold industry and start-ups, SHQs will now setup Project Facilitation Teams to act as the primary interface between the SHQ and the industry during the design and development stage. These teams would provide technical inputs, trial infrastructure, and other facilities as required by the vendor. Even if a single individual or firm offers innovative solutions, the SHQ

will now have the option to accept and process the vendor’s development initiative. SHQs will be allowed to hire domain experts/ consultants from private sector, to increase outreach and enhance awareness among the industry. Most importantly, there will be no foreclosure of project, after the project is sanctioned except on default by the vendor, to ensure that the successful vendor has assured orders.

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Editor, National Defence

National Defence (Fight For India) is the initiative of independent Indian journalist Shailesh Kumar, a Strategic Alarmist and National Interest Crusader. With 15 years of media experience, Shailesh Kumar has previously worked with leading television brands.